Surgery Godfather-Chapter 1963 - 1339: If You Can’t Play, Flip the Table

The two walked into the hotel lobby, and the light from the crystal chandelier was warm and bright, but it could not dispel the shadows in their hearts. Tang Shun’s premonition was confirmed that night, and it came faster and fiercer than expected.

At nine o’clock in the evening, the phone in Professor Manstein’s room rang urgently. It was his research assistant calling from Berlin, his voice clearly anxious: "Professor, you need to immediately check the New England Medical Journal’s website. They just uploaded an editorial titled ’Systemic Medicine: New Wine in Old Bottles or Dangerous Radical Behavior?’ The authors are Horton and three other heavyweight scholars."

Manstein quickly opened his laptop, connecting to the hotel’s high-speed network. The article was already on the website’s homepage, accompanied by an image of a complex network of human systems deliberately rendered as chaotic interwoven lines, visually suggesting ’overcomplexity and uncontrollable,’ with content sharp and systematic. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"They didn’t even wait for the conference to end." Manstein’s voice was low, "This is a planned synchronized action."

He and Tang Shun immediately reported this matter through an encrypted video call to Professor Yang Ping far away in China. On the screen, Yang Ping’s figure appeared against a study room background; he was reading a paper and removed his glasses slowly upon hearing the news.

"Expected." Yang Ping said calmly, but a sharp glint flashed in his eyes, "Horton’s questioning at the conference was just an opening. This article is the main course. They want to set the tone in the public opinion arena before we have a chance to fully expound the theory."

"Not just that," Manstein’s voice was filled with anxiety, "half an hour later, the European Medicines Agency suddenly issued a ’position paper on the regulation of complex system therapies,’ although unnamed, clearly targeting us. The paper requires any therapy involving multi-system intervention to conduct independent safety verification of each intervention component, which equates to demanding Phase III clinical trials for every condition, completely ignoring the overall principle of systemic regulation."

Yang Ping felt a wave of disgust; this is not academic questioning; this is a meticulously planned administrative siege. Scientific debate should be based on evidence and logic, not using regulatory barriers to choke new ideas.

"And worse." Manstein continued, bringing up another document, "The US FDA also simultaneously updated its guidelines, expanding the definition of ’combination therapy’ to include ’any intervention with two or more measures conducted simultaneously,’ requiring data for each measure individually and in combination. Huang Jiacai from Ruixing Medical got news that several multinational pharmaceutical companies are lobbying Congress for legislative restrictions on ’systemic therapies not thoroughly validated.’"

Three-pronged: academic questioning, regulatory tightening, legislative promotion. This is a cross-border, cross-field collaborative action, evidently planned meticulously for months. Each part seems reasonable—academic rigor, patient safety, regulatory improvement—but when combined, it forms an almost insurmountable wall of obstacles.

"What’s the reaction from our international supporters?" Yang Ping asked.

"Everyone is organizing a response." Tang Shun reported, "Dr. Engozi plans to publish a commentary in The Lancet; Professor Kawasaki from Japan is contacting peers in Asia; several European research centers have expressed they will openly share their positive data. But the opponent moved too fast, public opinion has started to shift. The topic #SystemicMedicineRisk is rising on Twitter, with some influential medical bloggers reposting Horton’s article."

Yang Ping rubbed his temples, why is science always so impure? Why must every true innovation undergo such struggles? From Copernicus to Pasteur, from Semmelweis to Einstein, history repeatedly follows the same pattern: new ideas challenge old orders, vested interests resist desperately.

He paused for a moment, then uttered a sentence that shocked both Tang Shun and Manstein: "If they can’t play, we’ll flip the table."

The two on the other end of the video call were stunned.

"The systemic regulation theory will henceforth withdraw from countries with significant resistance," Yang Ping’s voice was calm but firm, "and also prohibit the export of related technology and products to these countries. This isn’t our loss; it will be theirs. If they can’t play, then don’t play."

"Professor?" Tang Shun hesitated, "Isn’t this too extreme? We need international cooperation, global data sharing is the basis for the development of systemic medicine."

"When they use non-scientific means to prevent scientific development, the basis for cooperation no longer exists." Yang Ping’s gaze was exceptionally calm, "Sometimes, retreat is for better advancement. Let the patients in those countries continue to suffer the ineffectiveness of traditional therapies until their doctors, their media, their patient organizations start to question: Why are we excluded from medical progress?"

"But..." Manstein wanted to say something, but Yang Ping had already made a decision.

"Prepare the statement as I said. Meanwhile, accelerate the layout in countries willing to cooperate: Asia, Africa, parts of Europe. We must prove that without those countries with the highest resistance, systemic medicine can still develop, and perhaps even better."

The call had already been disconnected, the screen left only with the blue background after disconnection. Tang Shun and Manstein exchanged a glance, both seeing the complex emotions in each other’s eyes—shock, concern, but also a hint of relief. Maybe Yang Ping is right, instead of exhausting energy in endless obstacles, it’s better to redefine the battlefield.